nucmednet Chapter 1163 You Have to Pay the Price
Chapter 1163 You Have to Pay the Price
As night fell, James walked out of the office tiredly.
Today's experience made him feel depressed. He had never felt so humiliated as he did today, having grown up in Hong Kong. The young president's condescending attitude and the guard's contemptuous look made him angry.
"Damn Orientals," he cursed as he sat in the carriage, "Why should we, the English, bow down to our knees?"
The carriage had just gone halfway down the street when a young man in a suit hurriedly caught up.
"Master James!" the young man gasped. "Oh no!"
"What's wrong again?" James asked impatiently.
"The warehouse in North Point," the young man lowered his voice, "was investigated by the Chinese military police!"
"What?" James stood up suddenly, almost hitting the roof of the car. "How could it be... there is..."
"Cheng Hu led the team personally," the young man wiped his sweat, "all five hundred boxes of opium were seized. Several people guarding the warehouse were also arrested."
James' face turned pale instantly. That warehouse was one of his most important bases, and the goods inside were worth at least 100,000 pounds.
"Damn it! Damn it!" He pounded on the carriage frantically, "These yellow monkeys, how dare they... "
"Master," the young man said cautiously, "Now is not the time to talk about this. Cheng Hu said that if they find a similar warehouse again, they will hold the mastermind responsible..."
James slumped in his seat. He suddenly remembered what Su Zhengyang said in the Governor's Mansion that morning: "I don't want to see any more of these shameful deeds." It turned out that they had already started to act.
"Go back to the Chamber of Commerce," he said tremblingly, "I want to see Williams."
The carriage turned around and drove into the night. James looked out the window at the street scene. Everything that had once made him feel familiar and at ease now seemed so strange.
Late at night in the Chamber of Commerce building, Williams was about to leave when James broke in.
"Williams!" James yelled in a panic, "You have to make the decision for me! Those yellow monkeys, they..."
"Shut up!" Williams interrupted sharply, "How dare you use such words now? Do you really want to die here?"
&34;But...&34;
"It's nothing!" Williams said coldly, "I warned you a long time ago that you should stop doing those shady businesses. Now you have to bear the consequences of your own actions!"
James blushed: "You are the president of the Chamber of Commerce! The interests of us English people..."
"Benefits?" Williams sneered, "Selling opium is what you call profit? James, do you think it's still a hundred years ago?"
"What do you say we should do?" James roared. "We should give up all our privileges and listen to that brat?"
&34；够了！&34；威廉姆斯猛地拍案而起，&34；你知道那个&39；毛头小子&39；是怎么当上总统的吗？二十四岁就指挥军队打败了关东军！而你，除了靠着祖辈留下的特权作威作福，还会什么？&34；
&34;You...&34;
"I'm telling you, James," Williams said, stepping closer. "If you dare to do these illegal things again, the Chamber of Commerce will never take responsibility for you. China is no longer a weak country that can be bullied by others!"
"Okay, very good!" James gritted his teeth, "Williams, you just keep being a coward! I, James, have been doing business for 34 years, and I still don't believe it..."
"Get out!" Williams pointed to the door, "From now on, you and your business have nothing to do with the Chamber of Commerce. I won't let people like you ruin the future of the entire Chamber of Commerce!"
James stood there in a daze. He didn't expect Williams to say such a thing.
"You're going to regret this," he said viciously. "You're all going to regret this!"
After saying that, he turned and rushed out of the office, slamming the door.
Williams slumped in his chair and sighed.
Late at night, James opened the door of his home, cursing Williams' weakness while groping to turn on the light.
With a "click", the lights in the living room came on.
James was stunned. A young man in military uniform was sitting on his favorite leather sofa, his boots were polished to a shine, and his eyes were as cold as ice under the brim of his hat.
"You... who are you?" James came to his senses and roared, "Get out! Damn yellow monkey, this is my home!"
The young officer slowly stood up, a sneer on his face: "Let me introduce myself, I am a major of the Chinese Special Forces, Ilante."
"I don't care who you are!" James blushed, "Get out of my house right now! Otherwise..."
"Otherwise what?" Elant interrupted him, his voice chilling, "Like this morning, insulting our president?"
James' face turned pale instantly.
"Do you know," Elantra approached slowly, "what is the crime of insulting the president in China?"
&34;You...you guys are spying on me?&34;
"No," Elantra suddenly pulled out the Browning pistol from his waist, pointing the black muzzle at James, "We are just cleaning up the pests in the harbor."
James' legs went limp and he fell to the ground: "No...don't...I can apologize..."
"It's too late," Elant's voice was as cold as ice, "You shouldn't insult our president."
&34;Bang!&34;
There was a muffled sound from a silenced pistol.
James fell on the carpet with his eyes wide open, as if he couldn't believe until his death that he would die at the hands of a "yellow monkey".
Elante put away his pistol, straightened his uniform, and calmly walked out of the room. Behind him, the once arrogant English businessman had come to an end in the history of Hong Kong City.
In the early morning, the meeting room of the British Chamber of Commerce was dead silent.
Williams stood at the window, the telegram in his hand soaked with sweat - James was found dead at home, shot to death, and his wife and two children were missing.
"Everyone," Williams turned around and said hoarsely, "I'm sure you've all heard about James."
The businessmen in the conference room looked pale and no one dared to speak.
"I'll say this one last time," Williams' voice trembled, "This is no longer the port city it once was. The era when we, the English, could run rampant is over!"
"President..." a businessman asked cautiously, "James..."
"He is courting death!" Williams interrupted, "Yesterday at the gate of the Governor's Mansion, he insulted the President of China. James, that idiot, actually dared to..."
Williams couldn't continue speaking, cold sweat kept dripping down his forehead.
"From today on," he took a deep breath, "everyone remember this: first, never use any discriminatory words again; second, all illegal businesses must be stopped immediately; third, remember your identity - we are just ordinary businessmen now, not a privileged class!"
The meeting room was silent, and everyone lowered their heads.
"Look outside!" Williams pointed to the warship outside the window.
He didn't finish, but everyone thought of James's fate.
"Let's adjourn," Williams said wearily. "Remember my words and live well."
The merchants left one after another, and Williams turned back to the window. In the distance, the Chinese warships were changing guards, and the sound of orderly footsteps could be faintly heard.
He thought of the young president he had met at the Governor's Mansion yesterday. In those sharp eyes, was there any sign of compromise? That was the look of a truly strong man.
And now, James's fate is the best warning to everyone.